1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to lumber handling devices and, more particularly, to a high-speed lumber turning device.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the art of handling of lumber, such as boards, planks, battens, etc., it is often necessary to turn the pieces of lumber upstream of a planing machine or the like to have the most irregular shape side of each piece (flash sides) facing upward to optimize the planing of the wood piece. This upward orientation is due to the fact that, in saw mills, the thickest layer is removed from the top due to the adjustment of the cutting tools of the planing machines. Presently, because of the absence of adequate, reliable and efficient systems able to operate at high speeds, lumber industries frequently use manual labor to turn the wood pieces. This process has incurred many problems relating to the employees, such as tendinitis and the like, and to employers (quality of the work, profitability).
It is therefore an aim of the present invention to provide a turning device for selectively turning wood pieces or the like to a desired position on a high-speed conveyor.
Therefore in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a turning device for use in concert with a conveyor adapted to feed elongated wood pieces one-by-one to the turning device, comprising:
at least one turning member moveable between an idle position and an operational position;
a sensor located upstream of said turning member, for scanning the wood pieces on the conveyor; and
an operator controlled by said sensor and adapted, when actuated, to selectively cause said turning member to be displaced to said operational position for turning a given elongated wood piece on the conveyor to a desired position.
Also in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a method for turning an elongated wood piece carried by a conveyor, comprising the steps of:
providing a sensor to determine if a wood piece is to be turned on the conveyor; and
b) providing a motorized turning member automatically operated if it has been determined in step a) that the wood piece is to be turned such as to cause the elongated wood piece to be turned on the conveyor by said turning member to a desired position.